From the state of the art, many approaches are known for supporting the driver when parking a vehicle.
DE 100 45 616 A1 describes a method for operating a display system. In this method, additional distance sensors are provided by means of which the parking space is measured. Based on this measured data, a control device assesses whether the parking space found is sufficiently large for parking the vehicle. If this is the case, a parking strategy by means of which the vehicle can be steered into the parking space is automatically calculated. This known method is associated with a disadvantage in that the system of distance sensors that are required for reliably measuring the size of the parking space is extremely expensive. Furthermore, this system leaves open a number of product liability issues, since, in the case of any errors made by the distance sensors during the measuring process, damage to other vehicles or the vehicle being parked can easily occur.
From DE 101 61 316 A1 a further parking-maneuver support system is known. In this system, the driver can select a correspondingly suitable mode depending on the given parking situation, with a pre-stored situation being displayed on the screen, depending on the respective mode selected. Depending on the subsequent vehicle movements, on the display screen, the position of the vehicle being parked changes relative to the pre-stored situation. However, the support system only functions in a satisfactory manner if the actual starting position of the vehicle agrees with the vehicle's starting position in the situation in the intermediate storage system. To ensure this, it is proposed that corresponding sensor systems for measuring the parking space be used. Alternatively, it is proposed by means of suitable position locating devices to enable the driver to bring the actual starting position into agreement with the starting position of the situation in the intermediate storage system. This system is associated with the disadvantage that it is not possible to reliably ensure truly adequate agreement between the actual starting position and the starting position of the situation in the intermediate storage system.
From DE 100 65 327 A1 a method is known in which the image data from a camera is displayed to the driver as an image on a display screen in the interior of the vehicle. A parking-space icon is faded into this image, which for example shows the real-time situation at the rear of the vehicle, wherein this parking-space icon in the real-time image in true scale indicates a region which the vehicle can be moved into from its actual starting position, taking into account the vehicle's characteristics, in particular vehicle size, maximum steering angle and maximum angle of steering in the opposite direction, during the parking procedure. In order to find a suitable parking place which is large enough for parking the vehicle, the driver then maneuvers the vehicle until the faded-in parking-space icon is essentially congruently superimposed on the parking space shown in the real-time image. As soon as this is the case, the vehicle is in a suitable starting position to drive into the parking space that is suitable for parking.
Starting from the proposal for finding a suitable parking space as disclosed in DE 100 65 327 A1, DE 102 50 021 proposes a method with which the found parking space can subsequently be driven into by the vehicle, with the aid of the display system in the vehicle. In the method described in DE 102 50 021, the defined starting point is the position of the vehicle in which the first parking-space icon has been made to overlay the parking space shown on the display screen. The image which is displayed at this starting point in time is put into the intermediate storage system and subsequently, during the following parking procedure is permanently displayed on the display screen. During the actual parking procedure, commencing with the starting position, a vehicle icon is faded into this fixed image, with the position of the vehicle icon being calculated, relative to the situation on screen, based on the movement data for the vehicle since the time the vehicle left the starting position. This provides the driver with the opportunity of controlling his/her own steering movements during the parking procedure, relative to the situation at the starting point. This method is associated with the disadvantage in that during the parking procedure no updated image of the external environment is displayed to the driver. Consequently, it can happen that the situation in the external environment changes without this being detectable on the screen of the display system during the parking procedure. Furthermore, this method still requires the driver to make the suitable steering movements during parking, without direct support being provided by the display system.